Heretofore, transmission shift control palm abutting knobs of shift lever assemblies have included operating buttons extending from a side face thereof, for example, Kubota et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,612,820 and Kobayashi et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,884,668. Each includes an elongated push rod having a tapered cam surface formed on the top end thereof adapted to being pushed downwardly by the inward push of the operating button by the vehicle operator.
O'Brien U.S. Pat. No. 3,998,109 discloses in one embodiment thereof a sidewardly extending operating button adapted to move a curved sloped cam surface formed on an inner extension thereof into sliding engagement with an enlarged rounded cam end of an elongated pivotable cam lever, to thereby push down on a flexible detent rod.